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The Path To Leadership
We podcast about strong leaders, loyal employees, avoiding burnout, and raising profits building strong cultures. Everyone is a leader, but the path isn't always easy. Developing critical skills to build stronger, more successful and profitable organizations.
The Path To Leadership
Resilience and Purpose: Kelli Campbell-Goodnow's Journey of Service and Support for Military Families
Discover an inspiring journey of resilience and service as we sit down with Kelli Campbell-Goodnow, the executive director of the Valor Partners Foundation. After the heartbreaking loss of her husband, a Marine pilot, Kelli found solace and purpose in community support, propelling her into the nonprofit world. Her story is a testament to overcoming personal tragedy and dedicating oneself to a greater cause. Kelli shares her profound experiences and the vital mission of Valor Partners Foundation, which aims to fill the educational gaps for spouses and children of 100% disabled veterans.
As we explore the often-overlooked needs of military families, this episode sheds light on the critical role of educational support and community integration. From the powerful narratives of the Service Stories Speaker Series to the collaborative efforts with schools, we highlight how initiatives like Valor Partners Foundation are changing lives. Join us in recognizing the invaluable contributions of military families and learn how you can be part of this transformative journey, especially as Veterans Day approaches. Honor these families not just with symbols but with meaningful support and understanding.
Learn more about Valor Partners: https://www.valorpartners.org/
Connect with Kelli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-campbell-goodnow/
Join Valor Partners Foundation for a Veterans Day Networking Lunch with Guest Speaker Navy Bob! Register here: https://lu.ma/8c3zdsu4
Follow Catalyst Development on LinkedIn @catalystdevelopment and @drkatieervin
www.cdleaders.com
Learn more about Supervisor 101 at www.cdleaders.com/supervisor101
Theme music by Emma Jo https://emmajo.rocks/
Welcome back to the Path to Leadership. I am really excited for today's guest. I met her through many, many networking events and through good friend Linda Endicott, who I think I talk about on so many shows. Hey Kelly, how are you? Hi there, I am so excited to introduce you and the work you're doing to everyone and share a little bit about what you got going on. So, before we jump into everything you got going on, can you just tell people who you are, what you do, all that good stuff.
Speaker 2:Yeah, of course. Hi everyone, I'm Kelly Campbell Goodnow. I am the executive director of the Valor Partners Foundation 501c3, based here in Kansas City.
Speaker 1:Well, and we'll get into exactly the work that you do. But before we jump into that, can you tell us a little bit about your career journey and kind of how you got to where you are today?
Speaker 2:I can. It's an interesting, non-traditional story. I guess I'm not even sure where to start. So, if I go way back, I went to college for Parks, Recreation and Tourism Science with a certificate in outdoor education, so that was my direction many, many years ago. And then, out of college, I married a Marine. So that set us off on a 15-year journey something like 10 moves and four children and in 2016, we were stationed in Hawaii and my husband, Sean Sean Campbell, his name. He was a CH-53 pilot for the Marine Corps and he was involved in a tragic helicopter crash with 11 other Marines. So they all lost their lives that night and that, obviously, that life changed in an instant.
Speaker 2:So you know, I went from being a homeschool mom and Marines wife to a pretty lost and clueless widow at 36 years old. So I came here to Kansas City at that point because my parents lived here. So we came here to basically stay with them and ride out the storm and figure out what was next. And that's when, really, our first step into that new life was putting my kids in school. Like I said, they'd been homeschooled, and so that was a big step, a big change, and I did it with the help of K-12 scholarships they were given, so it just gave me a lot of peace of mind to be able to put my formerly homeschooled children into a small private school a little less overwhelming. They were all under one roof, so that was a huge blessing having those scholarships.
Speaker 2:And then from there I got involved with that organization as a volunteer and then as a speaker and then as a full-time employee and it just kind of snowballed into long story short, the career I have today in the nonprofit military veteran charity sector. So not your typical journey, but here I am and I wouldn't change it. I can say that it's been an interesting gosh. It's been almost nine years, which is really, really crazy to say. Feels like yesterday sometimes, but it's been quite a nine-year journey.
Speaker 1:I bet, I bet Well, and I know. When we met we had an immediate connection. I grew up as an army brat, so traveling around and talking as a kid and, and I know, as a military spouse, it's you can't know a stranger, because you gotta, you gotta create a, a village to to keep going.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's no time. There's no time to wait around for the people to to find you or to, you know, find that perfect community. You make the best of what you get.
Speaker 1:Right, yeah, yeah, well, and I I appreciate you sharing this story about your husband. I know that is um, what, what has put you on this path and um, I know it can never be be easy. Uh, but you, you talked about the um scholarship program and the the Valor Partners Foundation, so can you talk about what that is and the work that you're doing there, because I just think it's so fantastic.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So, like I said, after I spent five years working for the organization that had helped my children it's called Folds of Honor and I learned a lot in that time. A lot. I mean trial by fire, you know, talk about learning on the job, going from parks and rec and homeschool to suddenly being in this totally different world. And COVID happened in the middle of that too, and so, you know, looking back now, I can see how that time actually was valuable learning time for me, because I was home. I spent all that time doing webinars and just learning and reading, and you know everything I could about the industry and everything I could about the industry. And so then it was a year and a half ago. I was actually halfway through the executive MBA program with Linda at Rockhurst and this opportunity came along.
Speaker 2:Valor Partners, formerly known as the Heart of America Patriot Foundation, was founded here in Kansas City in 2012 as basically an annual golf tournament. They were raising money each year through this tournament and then giving it away to various veteran charities in the area. And that was it, and it was all volunteer great little group and they really built a community around that one event so fast. Forward 2019-20, around that one event so fast forward 2019-20, there was some leadership change and they went through a time of deciding are we going to keep this going? Are we going to do something different? And they decided to focus all their efforts on this one great need that they had identified and that was the unmet financial need of spouses and children of 100% disabled veterans. So they had, you know, they'd been working with some colleges for emergency funds and other support and identified this was just a big unmet need and it's kind of an unknown need.
Speaker 2:There's a, I think, a misconception out there that military families have plenty of college finance support available. You know, I've heard that said and I can say actually, you know my children, they're called Gold Star children. You know, having lost their dad in the line of duty, they receive a certain benefit from the VA the Fry Scholarship is what it's called, or Chapter 33. And we throw out all these names, it gets so confusing. The GI Bill is so confusing, even for those using it. So, but my children get this one benefit based on, you know, their sacrifice, whereas children of 100% disabled veterans or those who die after their service, they receive a different benefit. Chapter 35. And Dependence Education Assistance is what that one's called.
Speaker 2:Again, it's so confusing you don't have to remember all the names, but just remembering there is a huge disparity between the two, between what you know, the child or spouse of a service member who dies in the line of duty versus one who dies of service connected injuries and illness after his duty Right, and to me there should be no difference, definitely not as large as it is. So they identify this need and talk to schools and found out yeah, this is the student. You know. We talked to individuals in military and veterans centers on campuses and they will, without fail, every time, say that it is the chapter 35 student that needs the most help.
Speaker 2:It's the chapter 35 student that walks into their office most often seeking additional scholarships. And you know, looking into work, study and having emergencies, that you know they're just. They're just one life emergency event away from dropping out. And so we wanted to fill that need, and so that's where the Valor Partners program really made a big pivot and they focused all their energy, all their efforts, all their funding into this program and created a really unique way, I think, to meet that need.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know that's so and I'm just sitting here as I'm listening, I'm just thinking you know it's. I've been so fortunate to, like I said, I grew up with a dad in the Army. I've been so fortunate to work around the military in my previous higher ed institutions and, you know, I think one of the challenges of people who are not around the military is they just think that everyone wears greens, shoots a gun and drives a tank Like it's. They don't understand the complexity of not just you know the service member, but also the families and the true. You mentioned sacrifices that the families make and I think it's just so much bigger than what most people even can comprehend. What it looks like, that's true.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you know, I think, actually, I read a study just recently that said nine out of 10 Americans view the military family favorably. Nine out of 10, 90% of Americans have a favorable view of the military family and believe they should be supported. Right, a more favorable view than of the military itself and definitely of other institutions. So, basically, the military family is the most valued institution in America, right, wow? And so there's this total agreement across the board, across political divides and age divides and everything you name it.
Speaker 2:People agree that this is something we should support, but they don't know what they don't know. And so then, on the same token, there's this misconception about what's out there for those families and I'm telling you the spouse and the child of the 100% disabled veteran, because they get this little benefit, we all kind of think they're taken care of, but that little benefit is not enough to keep them in school. Um, you know, it's enough to get them there. And then they realize, oh, this isn't enough and they're dropping out or they're, you know, they just have struggles that we should not be adding on top of burdens. So, um, so that's where our program comes in, to fill that gap.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think it's so important to be able to do that. And to the point you talked about where a lot of people think, well, everything's covered. I was on the Command and General Staff College Foundation Board for many, many years and it's you know, we were trying to provide supplemental opportunities for the families and it's one of those things where, kind of what you talked about, where people were like what's covered by the government, it's covered by the government. And, to your point, not everything is covered by the government.
Speaker 2:There's a lot that goes into it, right, it's not the reality.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah. So can you talk a little bit about how people can support you and support the work? Like, how can people get engaged in the work that you're doing?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so well, to start our program. Because of the way we meet this need, we partner with the schools directly. So you know, you can go to our website and see this whole list of schools that has agreed to partner with us, and the first thing we ask is that they match our funding. So everything that we raise, everything someone donates to us for our scholarship, gets doubled right away every time, which is really great to be able to say. But additionally, you know it's not just about doubling the money Now we know that that school has skin in the game. We know that they know who this student is, they know why they've agreed to this partnership and if they weren't before, they are aware now of the need and of this way to fill it. And so it just builds this additional support for that student. And so you know, right now, the number one thing we need, obviously, is funding, as any charity is going to tell you. But the program has really taken off with our schools. I had, I think, two emails just this week, I mean in the last week, I think. I've had six or seven schools reach out to me interested in this program. They are ready to partner, they, they know this need, and so what I need is the funding to offer them, knowing they're going to double it, knowing they're going to meet it and they're going to administer the scholarship program and they are going to give these students additional support and resources through their Veterans Center.
Speaker 2:We just have to raise the funding to be able to offer to these schools, to grow that network, and we have 38 partners right now colleges, universities, technical schools. One of those partners is the Kansas Independent Colleges Association you may be familiar with, and that umbrella is in 21 small colleges in Kansas. So in all, that's 38 partners creating access at 57 schools across the nation, 13 states right now. So we've got this issue of this really great growing program. And then here we are, over here, nobody knows who we are over here, nobody knows who we are and nobody really understands this problem or how we're meeting the need. And it's, you know, the way we're creating these scholarships is so different from your typical scholarship organization. It's really unique. So funding is a great way to get involved. Obviously, we are expanding right now our board. We're looking for, you know, leaders passionate about this cause. We're, you know, growing some committees and some event ideas. So we need volunteers really, really at every level.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah Well, and I think about the veteran centers at the universities that I worked for previously and the hard work they did to support the students and it's not always easy to do, whether it be through the veteran services or student services, because all students have different needs, and so trying to figure out what those needs are can be a challenge.
Speaker 2:Right, right, and that's exactly why we partner with the school, and especially schools that have a strong veteran center, because we know if we can just get students in that door. You know if they apply for this scholarship and then they're in that door one of our representatives at KU actually she calls it the door to all the doors right, because now they're in that center and now they have access to financial planning help and mental health counselors in many cases and just a place to go to ask their questions and find those resources. They have food pantries and book lending, libraries and emergency funds. So you know, it's really it's about so much more than that scholarship check. That's. That's just the start, knowing that this demographic has such bigger needs than just the funding.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and goes back to you know, building that community and those relationships and making those connections and helping them be successful.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, and you know I actually I mean a great example. I got to sit down in a veteran center in Tennessee. Middle Tennessee State University has just an amazing military and veteran center, the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Center, and I got to sit down with our partners there and a student that's actually received our scholarship this year and a student that's actually received our scholarship this year and she's just outstanding. It was so encouraging for me to get to meet her and kind of see, be reminded. This is why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Speaker 2:You're the reason I'm doing this, because she just her story is astounding, you know, and the struggles that her family has been through, and you know she's the caregiver of her veteran husband who is an amputee and just struggling with so many health challenges. Her children have health challenges, and I could go on and on. But here she was sitting there about to finish her degree this year and then go on to her master's because she needs to, because she wants to, she wants to support her family, um, and her degree is one that's going to allow her to help other families like hers. So I'm just looking at her like you're my hero, you, you deserve so much more, um, but she's telling me that, you know, until she received our scholarship, she didn't feel seen. Yeah, oh, right. So that, right there, you know, just just to know that by doing this, by offering this scholarship, we are telling these families who really. They're hidden heroes. You know, the spouses and children. They are the hidden heroes of our military and we were able to make her feel seen.
Speaker 1:I love that Well, and it makes me think too of all the years. You know, what I know about military spouses is so often the sacrifices they make to support the service member, and so they typically have a career that allows them flexibility so nursing and education things that they can kind of jump around or they will take on the really important role of taking care of the house and taking care of the kids, and so maybe not having an out of the house job, and so the work that you all are doing is giving them that next step in, you know, their career journey, which I think is really powerful.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you know, I mean, these are all families who have been set on a different path than they expected, you know, like me. And so we're able to give them that, that leg up to keep them on that path forward Right, and just to let them know that they can, they can, they can make the changes they can, they can do what they need to do because they've got people behind them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's so fantastic. Well, and I know, unfortunately you had an event I believe it was last February and I wasn't able to attend here in Kent city, but it was such a huge hit. So can you talk a little bit about the events that you all do and how you're raising awareness? Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:So the event, that events that you all do and how you're raising awareness, yeah, yeah. So the event that you had to miss was our service stories speaker series. So we've held two now and we've got another. One actually has been rescheduled, it was going to be this fall. We're going to do it early in the year again.
Speaker 2:But service stories we have partnered with our friend Sean Wynn at patriotfeaturesorg. With our friend Sean Wynn at patriotfeaturesorg and he creates these beautiful mini documentaries of veterans, many of them here in our local community, but he also travels and if you go to his website, he's just, he has this archive of over a hundred veterans that he's documented and he does it for them, at no charge, a gift for them and for the family, and then as an archive for us as a community to know these stories. So by partnering with him, then we bring those veterans that he has met and worked with to a stage, and the first two that we did have been with World War II veterans. So there are only a few left really, and there are six here living in our local community that have come and joined us and it's amazing. And so we, you know, we kind of share bits and pieces of their documentary, and then Sean moderates just a question and answer time and their stories are incredible, incredible, I mean.
Speaker 2:I just I am moved every time to think of what they've seen and been through. They're all 100 years old, so you can imagine, and so that's an event we want to keep going as a series and we will, you know, we will start to, you know, introduce veterans from other conflicts, other eras, you know, across all times. And then we have an annual golf tournament and that's, you know, the same that we began with is still going on and that really is, is just kind of a a time. A lot of our schools will come. It's a great opportunity to just get people together, kind of a thank you event. But, like I said, we're growing and we need to do more, and so we have plans in the new year and and that's where, you know, new volunteers, committee members, people that love doing events, can really help us out.
Speaker 1:Well, and that's so exciting and I will make sure, in the show notes, to put the website. I know, like you said, you guys are kind of going through renaming, rebranding, all of that, so we'll make sure to get that all out. This is coming out before Veterans Day, so Veterans Day is November 11th, but can you talk a little bit about, you know, veterans Day? We assume everyone knows the importance of it, but not always, so can you talk a little bit about that?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, um, you know, yeah, sometimes there's confusion.
Speaker 2:I always love it around veterans day, memorial day, people are always putting out like little descriptions reminding who are we celebrating today.
Speaker 2:Um, veterans day, we, we, we honor and thank all our veterans, all those who have served um and in, our living veterans and and those who have died.
Speaker 2:Memorial day is is those who have died in service, and you know, our living veterans and, and those who have died, memorial Day is is those who have died in service, right, um, but yeah, in honor of Veterans Day, I can't think of a better way to honor our veterans than to, you know, also honor their families, um, and I know, I know our veterans appreciate that too. I mean, you know they know, as a family, what they've sacrificed and been through, and, um, and like you mentioned spouses having jobs that travel or not, you know, spouses that have put their careers on hold, um, or not been able to finish the degree they started in one place and then had to move, and you know there's just so many life disruptions that happen, and so for us to come alongside the veteran and their entire family is is a big deal, um, and I know, appreciated, um, so you know that's this Veterans Day. Support veterans by supporting their whole family.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I, I think that's so important. I, I love that and, um, you know, I it's funny because I close every show with the same question and I just think with this conversation I'm going to pivot away from that, because I think what we're talking about is so much bigger than just someone's leadership journey or career journey. It's really the life journey and celebrating military and service. And celebrating military and service and I guess, in closing, what do you wish people knew about the military family? What are the kind of the ask the like wear green, shoot a gun, drive a tank, like what do you wish people knew about the military service members and their family and their journey? Wow, good question.
Speaker 2:I told you I was gonna take you out of left field, and then I totally just did that.
Speaker 2:No, gosh. Well, you know, it kind of goes back to what we were saying about the benefits. I think there's a lot of misconception that the military is just taken care of, everything's just provided, and then you know, our disabled veterans just have everything they need, and that is not the reality. So I think it's just important to know. Number one our military families are us. They're no different than any other family, right, they're just having to take their life on the road every couple of years, but they're doing youth sports and they're doing homeschool and they're doing public school and they're working in regular jobs. Sometimes they just have to move and quit earlier.
Speaker 2:I mean, you know, these are, these are everyday families just like, just like ours, just like ours, who also have this added sacrifice of service of having to move every few years. You know, no questions asked, no choice in the matter of having to work their holidays and their lives around deployments and training schedules and things that they don't have a say in, that they don't have a say in. And then, ultimately, you know making sacrifices, like my family, yeah, loss, loss and physical trauma, and you know, seen and unseen, just there's this whole added level that these families are dealing with usually that that we I don't know that we forget. I think we think about it around Veterans Day. We think about it at certain times, but this is something military families are dealing with every day.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think you're so right and you know I get so emotional around the military. I think, growing up around it and knowing the sacrifices and the impact and I mean just even hearing, you know, the national anthem or taps or any of those kind of things like I still well up and get goosebumps because you know the amazing men and women that have raised their hand and said I will sacrifice whatever it takes to give to our country, and I think it's such a powerful message that they're willing to give and the families are willing to give, yeah, and it's a choice they make.
Speaker 2:It's a choice they make to raise their hand and volunteer, and I think that's important to remember too. Less than 1% of our population makes that choice, and that 1% has a family.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's so. I mean it's such, it's emotional, but it's also such great emotion, it's pride and everything else. So I really I appreciate you so much. I appreciate you sharing your story and doing this important work and sending you and your family and all veterans so much love and appreciation as we go into Veterans Day, but really all day, every day, just really appreciative of the work that everyone's doing.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 1:Yeah Well, thank you everyone for joining us on this path to leadership. Well, thank you everyone for joining us on this Path to Leadership. Please visit the website that I'm going to put in the show notes. Make sure that you are engaging in Valor Partners Foundation, supporting their work and really just supporting all the veterans and their families in the community. Happy Veterans Day to all of everyone out there and thank you again, kelly. It's so nice to have you today.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1:All right, I will talk to you all next time on the Path to Leadership. Bye, everyone.
